October 31, 2018
Opposition Leader and Member for Nanango Deb Frecklington says continued and lengthy delays for the reimbursement of Patient Travel Subsidy Scheme (PTSS) applications for South Burnett patients are “simply unacceptable”.
Mrs Frecklington said she had now raised her complaints in State Parliament, with a Question on Notice to Health Minister Dr Steven Miles asking him to explain why subsidy payments were still taking so long.
“I have been fighting for our community on this issue for a full year now and it seems the situation is actually getting worse,” Mrs Frecklington said.
“I have South Burnett locals ringing my office every day to ask why their PTSS are taking so long to be reimbursed. Some are waiting up to six months for their payments and this is just simply unacceptable.
“In March this year I wrote to the Minister for Health asking why reimbursements were taking so long and his response clearly showed he had no understanding of the frustration and anxiety this is causing our community.
“The Minister has an obvious disregard for how important these payments are, and how the delay in receiving this reimbursement seriously affects the most vulnerable members of the community, many of whom are pensioners and are undergoing treatment for cancers and other serious conditions.
“I don’t think he understands that this is not a choice for people from the South Burnett.
“We must travel at least two hours to see a specialist or undergo surgery, as most specialist services are not available at the Kingaroy Public Hospital.
“Over the past months, we have been given many excuses for why these payments are taking so long, so now the Minister has been put on notice and I expect honest answers and real solutions to fix this ongoing problem.”
